JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – The Missouri House of Representatives has given unanimous bipartisan approval to legislation seeking to protect citizens and seek answers as to whether victims of atomic bomb and hazardous waste in St. Louis and St. Charles Counties could receive compensation from the United States government.
State Rep. Tricia Byrnes’ legislation, HCR 21, calls on Missouri’s leaders and departments to conduct a joint investigation into whether the State of Missouri and its residents could potentially receive monetary compensation from the United States Government for contamination of the environment with radioactive and other hazardous contaminants from the Manhattan Project.
Speaking on the House floor, Rep. Byrnes told her colleagues it was their duty to stand with the victims of radioactive and hazardous waste caused by the Manhattan Project and the Cold War Era. She explained that St. Louis, St. Charles, and the surrounding region hosted uranium processing plants for the production of military explosive and nuclear weapons, and said that to this day, they are still dealing with the effects of the dumped radioactive and toxic contaminants and equipment related to this work.
“What I have found is that the Department of Energy conspired and actively engaged in a campaign of concealment and misinformation concerning the nature and extent of locations and hazards posed by the World War II and Cold War atomic and toxic chemical waste,” Byrnes, R-Wentzville, said. “They failed to warn Missouri and its medical community in such a way that a member of the medical community would be unaware of the presence, nature, and extent of the contamination. This stuff is still present in our community today, and has not been cleaned up and continues to threaten our environment. Our people, our children, are still being affected by this, and it is time to for actions and solutions.”
“What I find the most disturbing is that in 2019, when people were getting cancer and dying from this atomic bomb waste, the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR), which is a federal public health agency, admitted fault, yet nobody from the federal government stood up to take care of the people that are still, to this day, finding out that they are dying from cancer,” Byrnes said. “I have a high school in my district with students who have the same exact cancers as the atomic bomb waste workers who have already been awarded compensation, but the students are laughed at and told that it has nothing to do with an atomic bomb plant, all while right next door they have paid out over 45 million dollars in damages.”
“It is up to us to rise up; we will not stand divided on this issue, and we are done with waiting for the federal government to do the right thing,” Byrnes concluded. “When I was running for election, I promised to do whatever it takes to get the State of Missouri to sue the Department of Energy on this matter on behalf of our citizens. Now, it’s time to collect for the people of Missouri.”
In a showing of pure bipartisanship, members from both parties rose to speak in support of the legislation, which they followed up by passing the House concurrent resolution with a 150-0 vote on Wednesday, April 5th. Byrnes’ HCR 21 now heads to the Missouri Senate for consideration.
Rep. Byrnes represents part of St. Charles County (District 63) in the Missouri House of Representatives. She was elected to her first two-year term in November 2022. For more information, please contact her office at 573-751-1460 or by email at Tricia.Byrnes@House.Mo.Gov.